Texas A&M: Winning a BCS title

Led by a sensational freshman quarterback and with the season’s signature victory (29-24 over Alabama in Tuscaloosa), the Aggies are on everyone’s radar as a BCS championship contender this season.

Head coach Kevin Sumlin expects Johnny Manziel to build on his gaudy performance that earned him the Heisman. And Manziel will have his No. 1 target, Mike Evans, back as his go-to receiver.

The schedule sets up well, as Linemakers points out in giving A&M 12-to-1 odds to win the BCS title. Alabama visits College Station the week after cupcake Sam Houston State is in town. The Aggies travel to Baton Rouge to play LSU after a bye week and absent on the schedule are the three top teams in the East: Florida, Georgia and South Carolina.

But if the Aggies are going to replicate (and then some) their success from a year ago, they’ll need contributions from more than Manziel-to-Evans. Sporting News takes at five figures who will play instrumental roles in how far the Aggies advance in their sophomore SEC season.

Let’s make this clear: Matthews’ ability is not in question. He’s a stud, an All-American. He’s moving from right to left tackle, replacing Luke Joeckel, the No. 2 overall pick in the NFL draft in April. Matthews could have exited College Station early and been a top-10 pick himself, but he chose to return. He’s already earned preseason first-team All-SEC accolades at a position he’s yet to play. He’ll be great, but with an undersized QB who moves around a lot, the burden Matthews bears is a big one in protecting Manziel. He’ll also be counted on to help his younger brother, Mike, along. Mike is expected to be the Aggies’ starting center as a sophomore.

The senior back is one of those guys who has quietly progressed into a solid player. He played sparingly as a freshman, was a contributor as a sophomore and last season emerged as a threat in the running game with 808 yards and eight scores on the ground and another 18 receptions for 111 yards and a touchdown through the air. Manziel ran the ball a team-high 201 times last season for 1,410 yards. While those numbers are great, you can bet that Sumlin prefers fewer carries—and therefore fewer licks—from his star QB. That means Malena could see his number called more often and if he becomes a player defenses have to plan for, A&M becomes more difficult to stop and defeat.

All-American Damontre Moore is in the NFL with his team-leading 85 tackles, 21 tackles for loss and 12.5 sacks at A&M last season. Those are big, big, big numbers to replace. Obioha looks most ready to step into the All-American’s role. Ohioha, at 6-4, 255 pounds, earned a starting spot last season as a freshman. He produced decent stats: 25 tackles and a sack, but he also broke up six passes. His athleticism is obvious. The Aggies will need him to be more disruptive in 2013. The last thing A&M wants to see in its biggest SEC West showdowns is Alabama’s AJ McCarron and LSU’s Zack Mettenberger having all day to throw.

Sumlin’s reputation as a play-caller and offensive innovator are unquestioned. McKinney has been with Sumlin since 2008 in Houston. But this is McKinney’s first time serving as offensive coordinator. In fact, his rise to OC at a big-time program is impressive—and quick. In 2007, he was a high school head coach. But if the Aggies’ performance in the Cotton Bowl—McKinney’s first run at OC after Kliff Kingsbury departed—is any indication, Manziel & Co. will be just fine. A&M piled up 633 total yards—326 rushing, 307 passing—in a 41-13 rout of Oklahoma.

Part 1 of this story is recruiting. Seals-Jones was once committed to Texas and Williams signed with Auburn before heading to prep school and then choosing A&M over Auburn and others. That’s called a win-win for the Aggies. Pulling the 5-star Seals-Jones from the Longhorns’ grasp speaks to not where the A&M program is headed, but where it already is. At 6-5, 225 pounds, Seals-Jones is a big target who has also played quarterback. Williams is also a big receiver—6-3, 210—and one, if not both, will help Manziel and the Aggies forget about the losses of receivers Ryan Swope, Thomas Johnson and Uzoma Nwachukwu. Those three combined for 1,737 receiving yards and 17 touchdowns.